I recently spoke with Brian Mauriello from Stiles Associates about the benefits of bringing Lean process tools from the shop floor into the front- and back-office as well as the innovation arena. Here is part one of our two-part conversation.

Why do you think this is an important topic to discuss?

Lean is capable of producing impressive returns from cost savings and organic growth for organizations.

Last September I posted a blog: “What is Blockchain?” At that time, only 6 percent of people who took our poll on blockchain rated themselves as extremely familiar with it. Since then, the global conversation about this distributed ledger technology has evolved, and many organizations have begun conducting pilot projects using blockchain. In fact, almost every APQC member I talk to is engaged in some form of digital transformation, with blockchain increasingly being mentioned.

In my last blog post, I wrote about the ripple effect of Toys R Us’ bankruptcy filing and subsequent liquidation plans, reported last month. For consumers, including many of my parent friends, the question that is top of mind is which stores have the best discounts during the closeout.

As consumers of the toys and games carried at Toys R Us, many people I know are eager to take advantage of closeout sales as the largest independent toy seller in the United States prepares for liquidation.

Knowing where you stand is the first step to finding ways to improve your organization’s supply chain planning processes. And once you understand your baseline, benchmarking enables you to identify gaps, find successful practices that drive higher performance, and then establish realistic goals.

As organizations look back on the past year’s successes and failures, too many operational leaders were saying “humbug” about how much money their companies shelled out this year on supply chain planning.

New year, new priorities? Where will your organization be focusing your efforts in 2018?

As you get ready to tackle this new year, APQC's research team wants to ensure we understand what your top priorities and challenges are for 2018. We want the research we conduct and the content we create to be valuable to you and targeted on your focus areas.

I’ve gotten some interesting answers to that question, but last week while at the APICS conference in San Antonio, I was chatting with a supply chain leader from Sysco who lives in Houston. Her response to my question gave me pause. Her answer: Truck Drivers.